


In The Happy Pause of it All

by missberryisbest



Category: The Magicians (TV), The Magicians - Lev Grossman
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Gen, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-07
Updated: 2019-04-07
Packaged: 2020-01-05 23:39:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18376445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/missberryisbest/pseuds/missberryisbest
Summary: Happy times at the loft as Eliot making food so Q eats again and it grows to become weekly dinners, and cooking competitions, and basically, fluff with the whole group and some mild shipping content, but mostly- everyone is HAPPY and LOVED.





	1. Sunday Dinners

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote some damn fluff with THE ENTIRE MAGICIANS MAIN CREW because we freakin' deserve it. May add more, we will see!! Please comment and let me know if you like it, this is my first fluff piece.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things have been quiet for a while now. Well, as quiet as they ever are. Enough of a pause in the drama for Eliot to start cooking again. He said it was to get back in touch with his actual senses now that he’s not stuck in a memory haze anymore, but everyone knew it was mostly because Eliot noticed how loose all Q’s clothes are now, and wants to make sure Q actually eats. And he decided that the only way to get that to happen is to make An Ordeal of it and feed everybody.

Things have been quiet for a while now. Well, as quiet as they ever are. Enough of a pause in the drama for Eliot to start cooking again. He said it was to get back in touch with his actual senses now that he’s not stuck in a memory haze anymore, but everyone knew it was mostly because Eliot noticed how loose all Q’s clothes are now, and wants to make sure Q actually eats. And he decided that the only way to get that to happen is to make An Ordeal of it and feed everybody.

Not that Quentin is complaining- he gets fresh and delicious food every night. And with his meds being balanced again he is actually hungry enough to really eat. Somehow there are always extra vegetables on Q’s plate, especially when Julia or Alice are dishing up. He rolls his eyes, but goddamn, zucchini actually isn’t half bad when it is roasted with garlic and olive oil and tossed in herbs. Pesto pasta on Monday, Tuesday was this Greek flatbread pizza, Wednesday was this truffle mac and cheese that was so out of this world Q almost orgasmed right at the table. He and Margo fought over those leftovers, and no one was surprised when she won. Honestly, now that she has her ice axes she has an even more unfair advantage. 

Penny sometimes bitches about how fancy everything Eliot makes is, and takes over. No one really knows that much about his childhood, so there are various levels of surprise across the apartment when he makes delicious staples like chicken noodle soup and pot roast that somehow taste like the memory of being eight years old. 

No one really knows exactly how the dinners at Kady’s apartment became such a thing, but they did. Eventually they had to get a bigger table, and everyone did their best with their various questing and life responsibilities to at least be there for Sundays. Fogg showed up, challenging Eliot each week to come up with a better mixed drink for him than his trusty straight up brandy. Penny would grab Fen and Josh from Fillory and Josh always brought something delicious but kinda weird for dessert. Zelda dropped by when she could, which was tense at first, but they all rolled with it. Letting bygones be bygones and all that. Harriet came, too, every once in a while. Quentin and Julia spent a few weeks learning sign language to surprise her during her visits. Somehow Marina showed up one week, even though no one invited her, and they were all just super glad they had enough chairs for her and her girlfriend. And that no one got punched in the face.

Alice does not like cooking (though she is good at it, she just doesn’t find it fun), but she loves to do all the cleaning up, making everything neat again, and Kady always helps, saying it is the least she can do since she would burn water if she tried boiling it. Everyone goes along with it, pretending not to notice the bit-more-than-casual glances those two share, and the way that they move in synchrony. Fen, of course, sharpens all the knives while she is there, talking about the shoddy workmanship behind “these strangely forged earth blades.” Quentin notices and offers to go buy better knives, but Eliot hushes him, it is comforting to have the routine of Fen doing that every week. “Besides” he says “Margo and I have a bet on how long it takes her to just come one Sunday with some truly gorgeous knives from her father’s.”

This has been going on for months now, and Thanksgiving is coming up. Penny and Eliot are both adamant that they cook a better meal, and Margo is firmly team El while Julia is on Penny’s side. Quentin decides to make a game of it, with Josh as the judge. Of course Q is definitely not doing this so that he gets to watch Eliot CRUSH THE OPPOSITION while enjoying two Thanksgiving feasts at once. Sitting and writing down some of the rules, Q pauses and just smiles, thinking back. Remembering how many meals he didn’t share with his parents, and how he loved being invited over for dinner to other people’s houses as a kid. Thinking to the Mosaic timeline, and how Teddy loved carrots more than potatoes, which drove El insane because come on, THEY ARE POTATOES FOR GOD’S SAKE. THE LIFEBLOOD OF ALL FOOD. 

That weekend, after he had written up the first draft of the rules for Josh to review, Quentin just sat at the kitchen island watching Penny make something on the stove that looks suspicious but smelled amazing and Eliot prepare au gratin potatoes for a side with a very fixed and concentrated look on his face. Reaching over he ran his fingers through El’s hair, breaking his concentration. Q smiled, thinking to himself “maybe… maybe I don’t always break things. At least not anymore.”


	2. Thanksgiving Competition: Penny vs Eliot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josh has reviewed the rules, made his changes, and they were ready to go- one week of prep until Thanksgiving. Kady started taking bets on the side as to who everyone thought would win, and was surprised when even Fen got in the game. Who was gonna turn down the High King of Fillory? Even if she bet two silver and jewel daggers, which was a little unorthodox and would be difficult to split among the winners. But they were really pretty, and bad ass (like me, Kady thought, and laughed), and Kady was certain she could figure out how to make sure she ended up with them.

Josh has reviewed the rules, made his changes, and they were ready to go- one week of prep until Thanksgiving. Kady started taking bets on the side as to who everyone thought would win, and was surprised when even Fen got in the game. Who was gonna turn down the High King of Fillory? Even if she bet two silver and jewel daggers, which was a little unorthodox and would be difficult to split among the winners. But they were really pretty, and bad ass (like me, Kady thought, and laughed), and Kady was certain she could figure out how to make sure she ended up with them.

Quentin decided that Penny and El could get two people each to help them make all the food. Josh concurred, a sous chef and a second assistant were well within their rights to have. It took Penny days to make his final decision, but Eliot knew instantly who he wanted. 

Q was only a little put out when Eliot chose Alice (I mean, she can cook and all) and Margo instead of him. Alice agreed, albeit grudgingly, and Margo was pretty sure it was because Kady had talked last weekend about how Penny looked really hot when he was cooking, but of course Margo would never say that out loud… Except she did, because she is Margo. Alice blushed and left the room to go make some tea, happy that Kady was out dealing with Hedgewitch business.

Q put up some token resistance at not being chosen, but his heart wasn’t in it. At least this meant he could watch excitedly (and taste test a lot on both sides) and he did not have to worry about accidentally setting something on fire… Like he did that time he tried to make popcorn on the stove. Which was an event Eliot quickly reminded him about.

“Come on, El! It was ONE time!!” 

“Yeah, but the loft smelled like burnt popcorn until Alice came home and spelled it away. We do not need a repeat when the stakes are this high, Q. Alice is gonna be too busy ensuring my INEVITABLE VICTORY to spell away the smell of burnt roast duck.” 

Penny went with Julia (no one was shocked there). But for his second person, he chose Zelda, which was definitely a twist no one saw coming. Especially Zelda, but everyone could see how happy it made her. She took the time to adjust her glasses before agreeing, trying to act as though she had seen it coming.

He denied it, but Julia was pretty sure he picked Zelda to make her feel more like one of the group, rather than for a tactical advantage. He claimed that her speed reading would come in handy, and handed her a stack of cookbooks to memorize before the big day.

-

The night before, at a light dinner of salad and soup (everyone was saving room for tomorrow) El suddenly threw down his spoon - “Fuck!! We never decided on what the loser has to do!” 

Penny looked up from his not-so-subtle staring at Julia, shaking his head “I thought we were just doing this for bragging rights? And to know for sure who is the best. Which obviously is me.”

“Well, yeah,” El scoffed “but that is for the winner. What will you… I mean, the-as-of-yet-unknown-loser… have to do when they fail miserably and get CRUSHED INTO DUST?”

Marina, who had been crashing the dinners so often lately they just set a permanent place for her at the table, smiled. “I know.” She said. “And it is perfect. Loser has to clean up all the dishes and the entire kitchen - no magic.”

It was agreed, this seemed perfect- completely in harmony with the spirit of the event. And Alice had agreed to be a sous chef, so it wasn’t fair to assume she’d clean the kitchen as well.

-

Josh dragged a chair over so he could watch the whole event “to prevent cheating/maintain his unbiased outlook and ensure no travesties against food were commited” but everyone knew it was because he wanted to enjoy every second of being valued so much for his skills, and it was kinda cute tbh.

Penny went with a classic Thanksgiving feast, the only time he ran into an issue was when he wanted to have canned cranberry sauce - Josh said that was a no-go because it was a cooking competition. After a quick team huddle Penny had to send Jules out for more ingredients and he thanked his lucky stars that Zelda had memorized 6 different recipes for the jellied berries, so they put their heads together to come up with the perfect combo recipe.

Quentin kept stealing marshmallows that were supposed to be for the sweet potato casserole, until Penny shot him a look that was so reminiscent of back when they were roommates that Q backed up all the way over to Eliot’s prep station and stayed there for a good fifteen minutes. Peeking out from behind El’s back he waited Penny was adequately distracted and swooped in again. Zelda was making candied nuts, and all the wrath in the world couldn’t stop him from sneaking a few here and there.

Eliot was going all-out. This was a gourmet feast that would make Emeril Lagasse quake in his boots. Alice was a whirlwind behind and around him, definitely not putting on any extra flair for Kady, who was watching while leaning against a pillar, smiling gently. Margo was the most focused she had been since her quest in the dessert, attacking each task Eliot gave her with a voracious passion that made Josh shift a little in his chair and Fen bite her lip and unconsciously twirl her hair around her finger.

Of course Eliot also had themed drinks which he was crafting with care, crushing the mint delicately and lining the cup rims while keeping an eye on Quentin to make sure he wasn’t eating all of the sugar crusted flower petals because those were for garnish goddamnit. But he had to smile, because thinking back to the start of it all, his plan definitely worked. Q was eating regularly and his clothes all fit again. Taking a quick pause to look around, El was filled with a happiness that he never had in the mind-palace-situation, even in the physical kids college, because this? This was home. This was a family that knew him and loved him for who he was. This was everything…

“Quit your fucking daydreaming and mash your goddamn potatoes, Eliot” Margo snapped, hands never stilling from perfectly slicing apples and arranging them into rosettes. But then she looked up at him and smiled, and he knew that she once again saw him and understood where he was at, what he was thinking… But that this was a competition, and they had priorities. 

-

Soon the entire apartment filled with the scent of happiness and home and good cooking, the savory notes of rosemary and turkey mixing with the sweetness of apple and pecan pies, offset with the spiciness of cardamom and ginger. Q was hopping all over the place at this point from the sugar high of his taste-testing, and eventually both Julia and Eliot agreed they had to banish him from the kitchen because he kept getting underfoot. But even as she made him leave, Jules smiled and snuck him another handful of marshmallows to tide him over. 

Quentin decided to use all this energy to set the table, and as he was setting down the last of the dishes, everyone started trickling in. Fogg had brought his record player, and got some mellow tunes going in the background. In the past, none of the group would have thought Frank Sinatra was thanksgiving music, but after today everyone would smile and remember every time they heard “the way you look tonight” on the radio. Alice even sometimes added it to the queue of the playlist they normally had softly going in the evenings, just to ease tensions. She thought the way everyone’s face lit up was even better than the taste of bacon.

Marina came with a box of little gifts for everyone, which made everyone think that the universe had flipped upside down and pigs had wings, until her girlfriend came in behind her, all smiles and happiness and Marina passed off the box to Fen with a smile and a muttered “the things I do for love,” shuddering slightly before going to collect her girlfriend’s jacket to put in the other room.

Harriet came with a couple other Hedges that only Julia and Kady knew, so they added in the extra panel to the table and set more plates, and made sure they knew about the competition and why there were two completely different but complete meal options currently being prepared. Harriet pulled Kady aside and told her that these Hedges had nowhere else to go, and Kady just smiled and said “well, it is good that we have enough food for an army, then!”

Tick followed Fen around asking questions about absolutely everything until she got frustrated, he was distracting her from watching Margo…. uh, hanging out with the whole group as they finished up with the cooking. So she set him in front of the TV and showed him how to work the remote and left him to his own devices.

-

Dinner was eaten, everyone was lazing about the living room in various stages of food-coma, and the time for judgement had come. Josh was making a big deal of it, which made Penny frustrated, but Eliot saw as only right given the seriousness of his task. As he ate Josh had been writing notes in a notebook and he spent a good thirty minutes in his throne, er, chair, listening seriously to the input of every guest before adding to the tallies he was keeping. 

After an hour, Margo started impatiently tapped her foot, staring at him and caressing Sorrow and Sorrow with a meaningful look. Clearing his throat and nervously adjusting his collar, Josh spoke. Finally.

“This was a close one, and opinions were widely split between the contestants.” He started, as Kady pulled out her list of who bet and what they bet. “In the end, I had to step back a bit. I had to take taste alone out of the competition, and go back to what Thanksgiving is all about. How it is the taste of childhood, the memories of years gone by…”

“And for that reason, sorry El, Penny is the clear winner.” 

Penny and Julia let out a whoop from the corner where they were standing, grabbing her around the waist Penny spun her in a circle. Then, catching himself, he put a solemn look on his face and said “well, if you are sure.” 

Kady started making the rounds, collecting money. Fogg handed his over with equanimity, Zelda was sheepish, making sure she told the room that she placed her bet BEFORE being chosen for Penny’s team, and thought it wasn’t fair to the spirit of the competition to change her mind. Margo scoffed and sat back in her chair, eyeing Josh up and down as though she had never seen anyone more ridiculous. Eliot dramatically draped himself over the couch, putting his head in Q’s lap. “I’m ruined,” he sighed, placing a hand against his forehead. Q ran a comforting hand through his hair, soothing the taller man as best as he could in the moment of his defeat.

“Josh,” Margo said , “you better explain why I, I mean, Eliot, lost… Right fucking now.” 

Laughing nervously, Josh continued “Well, you see, Eliot’s dishes were amazing, no doubt. But Penny’s tasted more like Thanksgiving, and after hearing what the people had to say” he gestured around, spreading the blame as best as he could “I had to go with the meal that best fit the theme. The actual flavors were too neck-and-neck, I couldn’t pick on that alone in the end.” Margo nodded, once, reaching behind her for her purse to pay up, and Josh sighed in relief.

“Fair is fair,” Marina said, her girlfriend sitting in her lap contentedly, “Penny gets the bragging rights and Eliot cleans the kitchen - no magic.” Quentin could swear her eyes were a bit extra gleeful at the outcome, but he couldn’t be sure how she would have reacted if Penny had lost, so he kept the thought to himself.

Pulling himself up from the couch gracefully, Eliot exclaimed “never let it be said that I am a sore loser!!” With a flourish he created a trophy magically, and presented it to Penny. As Margo laughed and rolled her eyes, Penny smiled and polished it a bit with his sleeve. “I now will go… wash dishes and clean floors.” 

Walking away, after grabbing Q’s hand to pull him along, Eliot turned around “But rest assured, my friend… There will be a rematch.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't be upset with me over who won, lol, if Eliot had won Q wouldn't have been able to console him, and I NEEDED that scene. Also, Penny had all his friends die, he deserves nice things. I may do a part three soon- Holiday Edition (Christmas and New Years)!!


End file.
